It matters how you get rid of an unwanted pet fish. Here's why

As pleasant as the weather in Florida might be, it's these same conditions that have created the ideal environment for more than 50 species of non-native freshwater and saltwater fish.

Wednesday, February 13th 2019, 6:33 PM EST by Alex Howard

CAPE CORAL, Fla. - As pleasant as the weather in Florida might be, it's these same conditions that have created the ideal environment for more than 50 species of non-native freshwater and saltwater fish.

Some species of the marine lionfish have been banned from the Florida pet trade after decades of wreaking havoc on local reefs.

“They either bring them in here, to another shop or release them into the environment not thinking what it will do in the long run," fish expert Thomas Herrick said.

What's interesting is the species of animals that they do sell. They along with many other pet shops in Southwest Florida commonly sell things like bamboo shark eggs, cichlids, and other species not native to Florida waters.

“We carry a lot of the ones that you find out in the wild. Even in this area, we carry them as well, like tiger oscars, orange oscar [and] a lot of neotropical and South American fish,” Herrick said.

Some of these fish have been identified by FWC as invasive and can be found in local waterways. Many were introduced by accident or on purpose from the pet trade. Some of them can even be dangerous.

Thanks to Florida's climate and swampy waterlogged habitat, it's not hard for them to spread.

"For instance, on the FGCU campus, we have a number of stormwater ponds [which] interconnect underwater, so most of your gated communities in SWFL are the same way. It’s very interconnected,” Nora Demers, professor of Biology at FGCU said.

Demers recommends a better way to dispose of unwanted fish.

“To dispose of an aquarium fish that you don't want, the best and most humane thing to do would be to put it in a bag and put it in your freezer until it is dead.”

For a full list of invasive species identified by FWC, you can click on the following links: